Work Visa- getting me where I want to be
Wind and Rain blowing all over us in Houston
This seemed to be the most difficult thing to do out of this whole process. But Chad, Jamie, and I finally got our E-2 work visas!! They look so awesome and official. They even have a little golden embossing on it! We had lots of trouble with communication problems with the secretaries at the Korean Consulate in Houston, TX. They would never talk to us for more than a few minutes, never fully answered our questions, hung up on Chad several times, and accused me of being rude, when I was nothing but polite. Then once we got there the secretary was texting and messing around, being completely unprofessional, and took her sweet time to help any of us.
Yet, the other employees there were nice and polite. And the man we all interviewed with was super nice and sweet. So in the end after jumping though hoops, dealing with that rude secretary on a power trip, and having to fly all the way to Houston AND back, we got our visas. We’re official, we’re going to Seoul, South Korea, departing Monday July 19th, from Will Rogers World Airport!
Reflexing on Father’s Day
My Dad, circa 1952-1953
Sometimes on Father’s Day I feel like a Jewish kid at Christmas time. I have a dad but he passed away; it’s been 8 years. This is my 9th Father’s Day without him. I never miss him any less. You never do. It feels like another lifetime ago. That’s what Chad always says about his mom. We both lost a parent around the same age (14-15) and both lost one to cancer. That’s always been something we share and it’s nice to know Chad understands. It helps on days like this.
It feels like a lifetime ago. I’ve learned to drive, gone to high school, got my first job, had my heartbroken, graduated from high school, gone to college, found the man I’m going to marry, adopted a cat, graduated from college and about to go to live and work in another country, and countless other things- all this since he’s been gone.
And there is so much more life to live without him, I’ll travel the world without him, walk down the aisle without him, start a family without him, and be an adult without him. I wish I didn’t have to, but these are the cards I’ve been dealt.
Something both Chad and I are dealing with is what would our relationships with our deceased parents be like now that we’ve become adults. I only had a relationship with my dad as a girl. I sometimes wonder what he would think of me as a woman. An independent woman, a liberal woman, an educated woman, a modern woman. Would we agree on the same things, what would we debate about and disagree on? What would he share with me now that I’m old enough to understand things? What would he still keep secret? Would we ever have a beer together? What would he still want to teach me?
I guess I’ll never know, and someday I might be okay with that.
So I guess what I’m trying to say is love your dad while you have him. While he’s around to know how much you love and care for him. And for those who don’t have their dad’s around anymore, that’s okay, you can make the best of this day in so many other ways. Here’s to you Daddy, I miss you and I love you.
It Begins at the Ending
This is my first post. Hello. I have great plans for this blog but for now we shall start small and simple.
OSU Grad- Dec. 2009
I’m a recent grad and in this world of “recession” and “hard economic times” and all those other buzz words the news and car commercials throw at you, it’s hard to take it seriously when you’re a student. But once the excitement of graduation is gone you realize you’re in a weird limbo of not being a student and being a “post-grad” and then you final just come to the understanding that you’re unemployed. And being unemployed in these “hard economic times” is scary. And once out of college you realize, wow I have negative money. Meaning… my student loans and the money it cost to get a job or start a career puts you at negative.
Thank God for my mom. People out there, love your parents, even if they suck- but especially if they don’t, cause you don’t know how long you’ll have them and how much they real did for you. My mom immigrated to the US from the Philippines to find a better way of living and now in this twist of irony I’ll be emigrating out of this country that she came to so many years ago, to work in a country that is so close to her homeland I could swim to it (well I could swim it if I was Michael Phelps…)
Don’t just enjoy your time as a student, but enjoy your time all the time. When things get bad they can always get worst and when things are worst they can only get better. (I could work for Hallmark…)
Bottom line is not matter what your dreams are, how detailed you plan out your future, whether you’re 14 or 40, take things as they come, live in the moment and don’t feel bad if things don’t workout how you planned them, cause something better is bound to happen.
A Photo A Day When You're Far Away 